Coiler or uncoiler for strip material



Sept. 2, 1969 W- J. PEARSON COILER OR UNCOILER FOR STRIP MATERIAL Filed Jan. 12, 1968 Inventor tats 9 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A coiler or uncoiler for a mandrel mounted on a shaft and a retractable outboard bearing for the said shaft supported on two segment shaped parts in the form of ja'ws which, when in their out position are located at some distance from the mandrel.

This invention relates to a coiler or uncoiler for strip material and, in particular, to a coiler or uncoiler for metal strip. Coilers and uncoilers will be refered to in the following together as coil-supporting means," and comprise generally a mandrel on which the coils are positioned, the mandrel being mounted on a motor-driven rotary shaft.

Coil-supporting means must be so designed as to allow coils to be placed on the mandrel by axial movement or to be removed therefrom by such movement. In the case of coils of moderate weight and with mandrels rotating at slow speeds, this requirement can be fulfilled by providing the mandrel at only one end with a bearing from which the mandrel projects in cantilever fashion. The coils can then be placed on or taken off the mandrel at its unsupported end. However, when the coils are heavy, or when a centrifugal force acts on them, it becomes necessary to support the mandrel shaft at both its ends, one of the bearings being retractable in order to make way for the axial movement of a coil towards or away from the mandrel.

The retractable bearing is preferably the one located at the non-driven end of the mandrel shaft, and will be referred to in the following as the outboard hearing. The outboard bearing is generally made retractable by being supported in the frame of the coil-supporting means by movable elements.

It is an important requirement for coil-supporting means of the type referred to that the outboard bearing and any mechanism provided for its retraction should not obstruct the aforesaid axial movement of the coils.

It is a further important requirement for coil-supporting means of the type described that the outboard bearing should be rigidly supported in the frame of the coilsupporting means, so that the mandrel does not deflect under load.

It is an object of the present invention to provide coilsupporting means of the type above-described which fulfil the above requirements.

A mechanism for moving the jaws from the in position to the out position and back preferably comprises an arm which can be swung about a fixed pivot and on which one of the jaws is mounted, while the other jaw is pivoted to the arm. The mechanism may include, further, a toggle which is stretched when the jaws are in their in position and collapsed when they are in their out position. The toggle, and thereby the arm and the jaws, may be stretched and collapsed by a double-acting fiuid-pressure-operated cylinder-and-piston unit.

The mechanism for operating the jaws is preferably arranged at the side of the outboard bearing, and when in the retracted position leaves the space below the coilsupporting means free for movement of the coils relative to the mandrel.

When in their out position, the two jaws may be close to each other, so that they occupy a minimum of space.

The pivoted arm and the fluid-pressure unit for operating the toggle are preferably so arranged that they brace the outboard bearing against any forces acting on the coil during a coiling or uncoiling operation, thereby providing a rigid support for the outboard bearing during these operations.

The jaw which is pivoted to the arm is preferably provided with two pivot points, of which one is located on a link extending between the jaw and the arm. This makes it possible for the jaw to move away from the mandrel shaft at the beginning of retraction and to move around that shaft to the side of the first jaw when retraction continues.

The jaws may be formed separately from the inner parts of the outboard bearing so that these inner parts are left on the mandrel shaft when the outer parts are retracted together with the jaws. This is, for instance, the case with roller bearings where only their casings are made retractable. It is understood that the diameter of the bearing part which remains on the mandrel shaft must be small enough to allow free movement of the coils over that part.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a side elevation of an outboard bearing for coil-supporting means, together with supporting elements for the outboard bearing, and a mechanism for retracting said elements, the elements and the mechanism being shown in full lines in their effective position, and in broken and chain lines respectively in an intermediate and a fully retracted position.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a section taken along line IIIIII of FIG. 2.

In the drawings, only the outboard bearing and the supporting elements of that bearing and the retraction mechanism are shown, it being understood that the coilsupporting means may be of any conventional and suitable design.

The coil-supporting means have a mandrel M mounted on a shaft driven through a reduction gear by a motor, not shown, and adapted to carry a coil C of strip material. In the case of a coiler, the coil C is formed on the mandrel by winding up rolled strip on the mandrel as the strip issues, e.g., from a rolling mill. The finished coil is then taken off the mandrel for further processing. In the case of an uncoiler, a finished coil is placed on the mandrel for further processing, for instance, rolling, after unwinding. In both cases, it is necessary for the coil to be moved axially relative to the mandrel.

The mandrel shaft M is supported at its ends by two bearings, one of which may be an ordinary bearing of any suitable and well-known type, which is not shown here, and is arranged at the driven end of the mandrel. The other bearing, which is shown here as a rolling bearing R, has supporting elements which can be moved from an in position in which they engage the roller bearing R, to a fully retracted or out position in which they clear the path for axial movement of the coils relative to the mandrel.

In the embodiment shown, the supporting elements comprise two jaws 2, 4 in the shape of segments which, when in their in position, grip the outer race of the bearing R from opposite sides, as illustrated in FIG. 1, so that the bearing is firmly clamped between the jaws, and the mandrel shaft and the mandrel are held against deflection. The jaw 2 is formed at the upper end of an arm 6 which can be rocked, in a manner to be described, about a shaft 8 secured on a bracket of a base-plate 10. The jaw 4 is pivotally mounted on a pin 12 fixed in the upper end of arm 6, so that movement of that jaw about that pin moves the jaw towards and away from the bearing R.

The mechanism for moving the jaws 2 and 4 from their in to their out positions comprises a system of links 16, 22, 30. Link 22 is pivoted at one end to a shaft 24 fixed to an upright 15 on base-plate and at the other end at 20 to link 16, the latter being pivoted at 14 to arm 6. Links 16 and 22 form together a toggle which, when stretched, holds the jaws 2, 4 in their in position and which, when collapsed, holds the jaws in their out position. The toggle is moved from its stretched to its collapsed position and back by means of a double-acting hydraulic unit comprising a cylinder 40 pivoted at 41 to a base-plate 10 and a piston, not shown, with a piston rod 42 pivoted at 44 to link 22. The links 22 and 16 are provided with stop faces 36 and 38 respectively which maintain the toggle in its stretched position against upward pressure from the cylinder 40.

The link 30 is pivoted at one end at 28 to link 16, but not to arm 6, and at the other end at 32 to a downwardly depending lug 34 on jaw 4.

The pivot pins of the above-described system may all be provided with conical bearings to allow any slack between the pins and their hearing seats to be taken up. One of the pivot pins may, further, have means, in the form of an eccentric, for adjustment purposes so as to ensure that the two jaws 2 and 4 when in the in position firmly grip the bearing R.

In the position shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 and in full lines in FIG. 1, the jaws 2 and 4 are in their in position and accordingly act as supporting elements for the bearing R. The toggle 16, 22 is stretched, the piston rod 42 is in its upper position, and the stop faces 36 and 38 in engagement with each other. In order to free the bearing R from the jaws to make way for the axial movement of a coil relative to the mandrel, the jaws 2 and 4 are swung in a manner presently to be described from their in position to their out position which in FIG. 1 is shown in broken lines. To this end, pressure liquid is entered into the upper end of the cylinder 40, whereby piston rod 42 is pushed downwards and the toggle collapsed. The arm 6 is thereby rotated in a clockwise direction about the shaft 8. Collapse of the toggle also causes the link 16 to rotate in a clockwise direction about pin 14 causing jaw 4, through its link 30 and pivot 32, to rock in a counterclockwise direction about pin 12. The jaw 4 is thereby moved away from the bearing R and subsequently moved around the bearing R to the side of the jaw 2. The positions through which the various parts pass are shown in broken lines in FIG. 1; at the end of the retraction movement the jaws occupy the positions shown in chain lines in that figure. In these positions, the parts allow ample space for a coil to be axially moved off the mandrel M in the case of a coiler, or a coil to be threaded on the mandrel in the case of an uncoiler. For moving the jaws 2 and 4 back into their in position the piston rod 42 is subjected to an upwardly directed thrust by the hydraulic fluid in the cylinder 40, whereby the toggle is stretched and the arm 6 swung about pivot 8 in a counterclockwise direction, while jaw 4 is swung in a clockwise direction about pivot 12.

It will be seen that when the parts are in their out position, the space below the coil C is entirely free, so that unobstructed movement of coils through that space in the upward or downward direction is possible. On the other hand, the jaws 2, 4, when in their in position, clamp the bearing R firmly between them so as to give the bearing a rigid support.

As will be seen from FIGS. 1 and 3, the arm 6 and the hydraulic piston-and-cylinder unit 40, 42 are substantially parallel to each other when the toggle 16, 22 is in its stretched position, the arm 6 being downwardly directed with respect to the axis of the mandrel shaft M. In these positions, the arm 6 of the hydraulic piston unit 40, 42, together with the toggle 16, 22 brace the mandrel shaft M against any pull which acts on the coil C and tends to rotate it in a clockwise direction. In the event of the coil C being subjected to a pull in the opposite direction, the arm 6 and the piston unit 40, 42 will be arranged at the opposite side of the vertical axial plane of the mandrel shaft and symmetrically with respect to the arrangement shown in the drawings.

It will be observed that the two jaws 2, 4 do not entirely encompass the bearing R when they are in their in position, and that one of the upper quadrants of that bearing is left free. This is possible because this quadrant of the bearing is substantially relieved from any forces during operation.

I claim:

1. A coiler or uncoiler for strip material comprising a mandrel on which coils are positioned, a motor-driven rotary shaft on which said mandrel is mounted, and hearing means for said mandrel shaft including a retractable outboard bearing and supporting elements for said outboard bearing, said elements consisting of two segmentshaped parts in the form of jaws which, when in their in position, clamp the outboard bearing between them so as to embrace the outboard bearing from opposite sides, and when in their out position are detached from the outboard bearing and located at some distance from the mandrel so as to clear a path for the movement of coils on to and away from the mandrel.

2. A coiler or uncoiler according to claim 1, in which a mechanism for moving the jaws from the in to the out position and back comprise an arm which can be swung about a fixed pivot and on which one of the jaws is mounted, while the other jaw is pivoted to the arm.

3. A coiler or uncoiler according to claim 2, in which said mechanism includes further a toggle which is stretched when the jaws are in their in position and collapsed when they are in their out position.

4. A coiler or uncoiler according to claim 3, in which the toggle is stretched and collapsed by a double-acting fluid-pressure-operated cylinder-and-piston unit.

5. A coiler or uncoiler according to claim 2, in which the mechanism for moving the jaws is arranged at the side of the outboard hearing, so as to leave the space below the coil-supporting means free for movement of the coils relative to the mandrel when the mechanism is in the retracted position.

6. A coiler or uncoiler according to claim 1, in which the two jaws when in their out position, are close to each other.

7. A coiler or uncoiler according to claim 2, in which the pivoted arm and the fluid-pressure unit for operating the toggle are so arranged that they brace the outboard bearing against any forces acting on the coil during a coiling or uncoiling operation, thereby providing a rigid support for the outboard bearing during these operations.

8. A coiler or uncoiler according to claim 2, in which the jaw which is pivoted to the arm is provided with two pivot points, of which one is located on a link extending between the jaw and the arm, so that the jaw can move away from the mandrel shaft at the beginning of retraction and move around that shaft to the side of the first jaw when retraction continues.

9. A coiler or uncoiler according to claim 1, in which the jaws are formed separately from the inner parts of the outboard hearing, so that these inner parts are left on the mandrel shaft when the outer parts are retracted together with the jaws.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,028,422 1/1936 Talbot 24278.l 3,317,158 5/1967 OBrien 242-781 NATHAN L. MINTZ, Primary Examiner 

